Want Another Baby Right Away? Not So Fast

If you’re a new mom with baby number two already on the brain, you might want to slow down. A new study published in BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, found that the shorter the interval between pregnancies, the higher the risk of preterm birth.

What exactly defines a “short interpregnancy interval”? Researchers classified short IPIs into two groups: less than 12 months after the birth of the previous baby, and between 12-18 months after. They say that ideally, an optimal interpregnancy interval is 18 months or more. The interval period consists of the time between the birth of baby number one and the conception of baby number two. (So your kids would be at least 27 months apart.)

Here’s why they recommend you should wait before getting back to babymaking. Of the women studied with the shortest IPIs — less than 12 months — 53.3% gave birth before 39 weeks, compared to 37.5% of women with an optimal IPI. And they were more than twice as likely to give birth before 37 weeks. Since baby should cook in there for as close to 40 weeks as possible, reducing your risk of preterm labor is important.

The study confirmed that ethnicity is also a factor for early babies; black women who conceived less than 12 months after their previous baby had higher rates of preterm delivery than non-black women on similar timetables. But black women also had shorter IPIs in general.

“We know that inadequate birth spacing is associated with more adverse pregnancy outcomes,” says John Thorp, BJOG Deputy Editor in Chief. “This large population-based study further strengthens this and puts more emphasis on the importance of optimal birth spacing, of 18 months or more, especially among women with additional risk factors for preterm birth.”

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Anisa Arsenault is the editorial assistant at The Bump, and was probably led there by her affinity for the video "Babies Eating Lemons for the First Time." (Having a bad day? Check it out.) Obsessed with all sorts of news and celebrities, she'll keep you updated on all that is current, relevant and funny in the world of parenthood and babies. Follow her on Twitter @anisaarsenault. read more

Our son was almost 2.5 before we started trying (& with all I went through with him – it was a rough delivery & I had issues post birth requiring hospitalization 3 times – I’m surprised we decided that soon!). Our daughter is due in about 2 months, so our kids will be approximately 39 months apart, and it feels like a good amount.